During recent legislative action in the PA House of Representatives, the following votes were approved with the bills having been passed onto the state Senate for concurrence:

House Bill 1042

The bill would allow incarcerated individuals to earn vocational and educational credits to reduce their minimum sentence. Inmates can earn 10 to 180 days off their minimum sentence for completing approved vocational or educational programs.

Vote: 149-50

Yes: Jamie Barton and Doyle Heffley

No: Gary Day, Zach Mako and Jack Rader

House Bill 1260

The bill would require all new warehouses and distribution centers be constructed so that they are solar-ready, and provides a tax credit for existing warehouses and distribution centers to make any retrofits necessary to be solar-ready.

Vote: 101-98

No: Barton, Day, Heffley and Rader

House Bill 1750

The bill would create an offense related to misrepresenting the disposal of animal remains and include additional penalties on funeral directors and their licenses for violating this act.

Vote: 199-0

Yes: Barton, Day, Heffley, Mako and Rader

House Bill 2189

The bill would raise the minimum wage from the current $7.25 per hour to $15. Starting in January 2027, the wage would go to $11 per hour, followed by rates of $13 starting January 2028, and $15 starting January 2029. Starting in 2030, the minimum wage would be indexed to inflation, increasing every year based on the Consumer Price Index. The bill also increases the minimum for tipped employees to 60 percent of the hourly rate, and allows counties to pass ordinances raising their wage faster than the three-year schedule.

Vote: 104-95

No: Barton, Day, Heffley, Mako and Rader

House Bill 802

The bill would amend the state’s Right-to-Know Law, to ensure sensitive records created or used to accommodate individuals with disabilities are protected from public disclosure.

The bill would update the Right-to-Know Law by adding a clear exemption for disability-related accommodations. The law already includes important exemptions for certain public records, but it has not explicitly addressed materials generated to assist individuals with disabilities, creating potential privacy concerns.

Vote: 199-0

Yes: Barton, Day, Heffley, Mako and Rader

House Bill 1257

The bill would expand property tax exemptions for veterans with service-connected disabilities (including 50 percent to 99 percent ratings) and their unmarried surviving spouses. It would extend tax relief beyond the current 100 percent disability threshold, potentially allowing pro-rated exemptions for veterans with 50-99 percent disabilities.

It would also extend benefits to include unmarried surviving spouses of service members killed in action, prisoners of war, or missing in action.

Vote: 193-6

Yes: Barton, Day, Heffley, Mako and Rader

The House also passed the following bill with an amendment and returned it to the Senate for action:

Senate Bill 997

The bill would amend Title 75 (Vehicles) to expand the Motor Carrier Safety Advisory Committee, adding a representative from the Pennsylvania Online Messengers Association Board of Directors and a member of the highly-automated vehicle trucking industry.

Vote: 199-0

Yes: Barton, Day, Heffley, Mako and Rader